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RESOLUTIONS of the 28Th ZIONIST CONGRESS RESOLUTIONS of the 28th ZIONIST CONGRESS with A Summary of the Proceedings and the Composition of the Congress Jerusalem January 18-28, 1972 ן i PUBLISHED BY THE ORGANIZATION AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT OF THE ZIONIST EXECUTIVE ההסתדרות הציונית העולמית WORLD ZIONIST ORGANISATION בברכת המחלקה לארגון ולהסברה WITH THE COMPLIMENTS OF THE ORGANIZATION AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT ירושלים. ת. ד. 92 P.O. BOX 92, JERUSALEM טל. TEL. 39261 RESOLUTIONS of the 28th ZIONIST CONGRESS with A Summary of the Proceedings and the Composition of the Congress Jerusalem January 18-28, 1972 JERUSALEM 1972 Printed under the supervision of the Publishing Department of the Jewish Agency by The Jerusalem Post Press, Jerusalem Translated from the Hebrew Original Printed in Israel CONTENTS INTRODUCTION I. Congress Proceedings 5 II. The Date and Composition of Congress 13 RESOLUTIONS OF THE CONGRESS A. Political Matters 19 B. Zionist Territorial Organizations 22 C. Legal Matters 27 D. Information and Ideological Problems 28 E. Relationship with Organized World Jewry 33 F. Aliya and Absorption 34 G. Youth Aliyah 39 H. Settlement and Land Development 41 I. Social Problems in Israel 42 J. Youth and Student Affairs 46 K. Education and Culture in the Diaspora 51 L. Budget 55 M. Funds 57 N. Elections 59 TABLES Table A — Election Results as Confirmed by Congress Tribunal 68 Table B — Allocation of Mandates on the Basis of World Elections 70 Table C — Distribution of Delegates and Groupings as at End of Congress 71 INTRODUCTION I. CONGRESS PROCEEDINGS The 28th Zionist Congress convened at Binyanei Hooma (National Conventions Centre) in Jerusalem, on January 18-28, 1972. On January 18, prior to the Opening Session, members of the Executive and the General Council, delegates, observers and guests assembled on Mount Herzl where Mr. A. Reiss, Acting Chairman of the Zionist General Council, laid a wreath on the tomb of Theodor Herzl and Dr. C. A. Viterbo and D. Mittelberg, the veteran and the youngest delegates respectively, planted a tree in the name of Congress. The festive Opening Session of Congress took place in the evening of January 18. Over 3,000 delegates, observers and guests filled the large hall. Among those present were almost all the members of the Cabinet, all the members of the Zionist Executive, members of the Presidium of the Zionist General Council, Justices of the Supreme Court, mem- bers of the Congress Tribunal and many other important personages. The Prime Minister, the Chairman of the Zionist Executive, Mr. David Ben-Gurion, the President of the Supreme Court, the Chief Rabbis, the Chairman of the Executive in the United States, the Chairman of the Congress Tribunal, the Mayor of Jerusalem, and the Acting Chairman of the Zionist General Council took their seats on the platform, and when the President of the State of Israel, Mr. Zalman Shazar, entered the hall Hatikva was sung. Psalm 122 and an "In Memoriam" were read. With a choir singing appropriate songs in the background, new immigrants, each one representing a country from which Aliya had come in recent years, and representatives of new settlements founded since the Six-Day War, all carrying flags, began filing down the aisles of the hall to the platform. Congress was then officially opened by the Chairman of the Zionist Executive with the traditional three strokes of the gavel. He welcomed the delegates and guests and the representatives of the Diplomatic Corps. Greetings were extended by the President of the State, the Mayor of Jerusalem, Mr. Teddy Kollek, and Chief Rabbi Itzhak Nissim. Mr. Moshe Rivlin, Associate Member of the Executive, read out several cables of greet- ings from Jews in the Soviet Union, including six interned in a prison camp. The Chairman of the Zionist Executive, Mr. Louis A. Pincus subsequently delivered his keynote address on "The Jewish People and the Zionist Movement—Challenges and Tasks." 5 The second session was opened by Mr. Louis A. Pincus the following morning. The Chairman of the Congress Tribunal, Justice Moshe Landau, reported on the elections and on the composition of Con- gress, and Mr. Anselm Reiss, Acting Chairman of the Zionist General Council, submitted a proposal for the composition of the Congress Pre- sidium: President of Congress—Mr. Louis A. Pincus; Members—Rabbi Dr. Bernard Bergman, Mr. Meir Dotan, Dr. Anna Gelber, Dr. Israel Goldstein, Mrs. Rose Halprin, Mr. Jose Kestelman, Mr. Raphael Kotlo- witz, Dr. Harris J. Levine, Prof. Raphael Mahler, Mr. Daniel Monson, Mr. Jacob Tsur, Mr. Herman L. Weissman, Mr. Israel Yeshayahu, Mrs. Esther Zackler, Rabbi Tsemach M. Zambrowsky. The proposal was approved by Congress. The Presidium subsequently resolved to coopt the following repre- sentatives of various groups in an advisory capacity: Mr. Israel Dunsky, Mr. Elie Eliachar, Mr. Nahum Markovsky (later replaced by Mr. Milton Zaretsky), Rabbi Yaacov Behor Efrima Shvili and Mr. Zvi Yekutiel. Prof. Mahler was later replaced by Mr. Mordechai Blanche. When the Members of the Presidium had taken their seats on the platform, the Minister of Finance, Mr. Pinhas Sapir, addressed Con- gress. He was followed by Mr. A. L. Dulzin, Treasurer of the World Zionist Organization. The Debate on "The Jewish People and the Zionist Movement— Challenges and Tasks" was opened in the afternoon session of Wednes- day, January 19. The opening speakers were Professor Abraham J. Heschel and Dr. Emanuel Neumann, Chairman of the Executive in New York, followed by Dr. Joseph Burg, Minister of the Interior, and Mr. Joseph Sapir, M.K. The latter part of this session was devoted to marking the 85th birthday of Mr. David Ben-Gurion. President Shazar honoured the occasion with his presence. Mr. L. A. Pincus spoke of Mr. Ben-Gurion's achievements, while Mr. Moshe Rivlin presented Mr. Ben-Gurion with a Scroll of Honour, and two school- children handed over to him three volumes of signatures of 35,000 pupils in Jewish Schools in the United States and Canada, who sent him their good wishes on his anniversary. The session concluded with a short reply from Mr. Ben-Gurion. At the fourth session, on Wednesday evening, the steering Com- mittee was elected as follows: Mr. Itzhak Korn (Chairman), Mr. Joseph Bankower, Mr. Pinchas Cruso, Mr. Paul Goldman, Mr. Uri Gordon, Mr. Chaim Herzog, Mrs. Senta Josephtal, Dr. Schneier Levenberg, Dr. Judah Shapiro—Labour Zionist Movement; Mr. Paul Safro, Mrs. Bernice Salpeter, Mr. Sidney Shipton, Mr. Kalman Sultanik, Mr. Melech Topiol—Confederation of General Zionists; Mr. Yigal Cohen, Mr. Simcha Erlich, Mr. Jacques Torczyner—World Union of General Zionists; Rabbi Yehuda Ellinson, Mr. Arieh Handler, Mrs. Ruth Jacob- son, Dr. Itzhak Rafael—Mizrachi Hapoel-Hamizrachi; Adv. Raphael 6 Kotlowitz, Dr. Harry Levy, Dr. Yaacov Eliezer Tavin—Union of Herat- Hatzoar; Mr. Reuben Arzi, Mrs. Chaika Grossman—World Union of Mapam; Mrs. Raya Jaglom—Wizo (in an advisory capacity); Mr. Avraham Tory—Independent Zionist Movement. Representatives of Russian immigrants and of the World Sephardi Federation were coopted in an advisory capacity. The Debate on "The Jewish People and the Zionist Movement— Challenges and Tasks" was then renewed with the participation of Mr. Aharon Yadlin, M.K., Chairman of the Israel Zionist Council, Rabbi Shlomo Goren, Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, and Mr. Moshe Kol, Minister of Tourism. The debate continued through the 5th and 6th sessions in the morning and afternoon of Thursday, January 20, the following taking part: Dr. J. Shapiro, Dr. I. Goldstein, Dr. Y. Raphael, Mr. B. Kochebiesky, Mrs. R. Jaglom, Mr. J. Tsur, Mr. E. Eliachar, the writer Mr. Albert Memmi, Mr. Z. Shuval and Rabbi Dr. B. Poupko. At the 5th session, the President of the Congress reported that the Congress Presidium had rejected by a large majority Rabbi Kahane's request to be given a hearing at Congress. The minority motion of Herut-Hatzoar, presented by Mrs. Lydia Slovina, was put to the vote and rejected by a large majority. Rabbi Kahane who was present during the discussion and vote thereupon left the hall. In the late afternoon of Thursday, delegates and other participants attended a reception given by the President of the State in the Knesset Building. At the 7th session of Thursday evening, Congress elected the follow- ing 11 Committees, each composed of 45 members: Committee on Zionist Federations; Committee on Relations with the Organized Jewish World; Committee on Aliya and Absorption; Committee on Youth Aliyah; Committee on Social Problems in Israel; Political Committee; Committee on Information Matters and Ideological Problems; Committee on Youth and Students; Committee on Education in the Diaspora; Committee on Budget and the National Funds; Committee on Agricultural Settlement and Land Development. The Debate on "The Jewish People and the Zionist Movement— Challenges and Tasks" was then resumed with the participation of Messrs. Menahem Begin and Jacob Hazan. Mrs. Golda Meir, Prime Minister of Israel, subsequently addressed Congress. Friday, January 21, was devoted to Committee work. On Saturday night Congress held a festive session to mark the 75th Anniversary of the First Zionist Congress. A Scroll of Jubilees was recited, in which tribute was paid to the 70th Anniversary of the JNF, the 50th Anni- 7 versary of Keren Hayesod, the 70th Anniversary of Mizrachi, the 50th Anniversary of Hapoel-Hamizrachi, the 60th Anniversary of Hadassah, the 50th Anniversary of Wizo, the 50th Anniversary of Moetzet Hapoalot and the 50th Anniversary of agricultural settlement in the Valley of Jezreel. The proceedings were opened by Dr. Israel Goldstein and the main address was delivered by Mr. Yigal Alon, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Culture. This was followed by a pageant entitled "The Zionist Movement—Vision and Reality," written and directed by Mr. Yaakov Ben-Herzl. The Committees continued their work on Sunday morning, January 23.
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